How long does it take you from the time you arrive on your fishing grounds until you are trolling with all of your lines in the water? Twenty minutes, thirty minutes, more? When I first started running my own boat to troll for salmon, it easily took me at least 30 minutes or more just to get 6 rods rigged and in the water. Assuming everything went smoothly!
First, I would setup my downriggers. Since I didn’t have a fancy track system, I would have to clamp the downrigger to the boat. Then spool out enough wire to hook up the weights. Next, I would pick which lure I would want to use and rig up my down rigger rod. Then untangle a leader and hook everything up. Finally, I would let out the desired length of line clip it to the downrigger weight and let out the downrigger to my desired depth. Then I would repeat for downrigger number 2. At least 10 minutes have gone by and I only have 2 lines in the water. I am getting frustrated just explaining the process.
Next would come a dipsy rod. I’d grab the rod, hunt for where ever the heck I put my dipsies, hook up the dipsy, check to make sure it’s pulling the right direction for the side of the boat I was planning on running the rod on. Pull a leader. Pick a flasher and another leader. Then pick a lure…see where this is all going? Ten to fifteen minutes later I had 4 lines in the water assuming all went right the first time. I won’t bore you with the rest of the details.
Since then, I have changed a few things to make it possible for me to get my lines in the water as quickly and efficiently as possible. One big change that helped a lot was adding a couple Traxstech Downrigger Swivel Bases. This allowed me to keep my downriggers in place on the boat and quickly get them ready when it was time to put lines in the water.
Secondly and I think more important. Now I prepare as much as I can the night before. I start by checking the local fishing reports, hit up my friends that fish too and I send out feelers on the Facebook groups that I follow to get intel on what’s working. Based on that information I then pick the lures I am going to use in the morning and rig up all my rods the night before.
In terms of my rods and rigging, there are a few changes I have made to make it easier to handle and deploy my gear. For my down rigger rods and lead core rods, I tie my leaders directly to my braid or lead core using a double uni knot. This eliminates a swivel from your mainline to leader and the hassle with not being able to reel your line up tight enough to secure your lure on your rod when using longer leaders. Plus leader length isn’t really a problem anymore.
I’ve also switched from a traditional rigging of my dispy diver to the s-clip rigging. Now all I have to do when putting my dispy out is clip it on to the line when I am putting the line in the water. Again, I can run as long a leader as I want without fighting managing the rod off or on the water. If you’re not familiar with the process check out this video.
Another trick that really helps with preparing the night before are The Lure Jacket and Dipsy Lure Jacket. These Velcro wraps allow me to have my lures rigged on my rods and ready to go without having to worry about my rods getting all tangled while I transport them to the launch. They are well worth the $15 bucks or so it will cost you to save you the aggravation of untangling rods when you’re out on the water trying to get lines in the water. I just put all my rigged rods on the floor of my boat and they are ready to go as soon as I am ready to drop lines. Little to no tangles, just pull off the lure jackets and you’re good to put your line in the water.
Lastly, once I have launched I set all my rods in place and I have my downrigger setup and ready to go before I reach the pier heads. That way all I have to do is drop lines as soon as I hit my destination. Now instead of 30 minutes or more, I can usually have at least 6 or more lines in the water and fishing in 5-10 minutes upon arriving where I want to fish.
Why does that time to get setup matter? Well first of all it is 20-30 minutes of fishing time you are losing on the water. Secondly, if like me, most trips you take are morning trips, you’re losing the best 20-30 minutes of fishing time of the day as the sun comes up.
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